Let’s not beat around the bush – the majority have people have questioned whether there should be a limit on how much someone, well, has a venture downstairs.

Dr. Kelly Brown, a board-certified Urologist and fellowship-trained in Andrology, with a strong background in men’s health, particularly in clinical medicine and research, has revealed whether there is a frequency that people should be aiming for when it comes masturbating.

Sex or porn addiction is something that many may be concerned about, with this often being linked to the number of times someone can “reach completion” in a certain timespan.

So, is there a limit, and how much is too much?

How often do men masturbate?

While there isn’t any detailed data on the subject, there is some available self-reported statistics.

This can be useful, though it relies on the participants being 100 percent truthful about their habits, but it is still the most accurate data available to the scientific world.

A study from 2023 asked men about how often they made time for self love, and the following was found:

1. Around 20 percent did it once a week or more, up to daily
2. Approximately 15 percent did it one or more times a month
3. About 20 percent did it a few times per year
4. About one-third of men said they hadn’t masturbated in the last year

Many may believe that those who do it daily or weekly may be partaking in the habit too often, but this isn’t true at all.

It’s all about self-perception, and more importantly, there is no direct link between how often one masturbates and any negative physical or mental side effects.

There isn’t an exact number that is considered “too much” when it comes to some alone time. Credit: Pekic/Getty

Can you masturbate too much?

Experts don’t seem to agree on what counts as compulsive masturbation, but there are certain triggers and signs which can indicate that someone is doing it too much.

There isn’t bucketloads of certainty in this field of research, but the doctor has compared addiction to masturbating to sex or porn addiction.

Essentially, a “distressing amount” is relative to the person – someone with an open mind about sex may be more open to the deed being done more, while more conservative individuals may frown upon it.

However, there are several health-related symptoms which can indicate that someone is masturbating too often.

According to the medical expert, these can include:

1. Raw, red, or bleeding skin on the penis
2. Painful erections
3. The penis becomes sore

These can be signs that you’re doing it either too often or too hard, but they are far easier to identify than the psychological signs.

It has been reported that regular masturbation can lead to actual sex feeling less satisfying, while people from certain cultures can also find themselves dealing with masturbatory guilt.

For some, frequent masturbation can negatively affect your daily life, from self-confidence to the relationships that you have with others.

It is said that this can lead to more serious mental health issues, but scientific data on the impact of the deed is still lacking heavily.

Physical signs of doing it too much are easier to identify than psychological signs. Credit: Paul Strowger/Getty Images

Masuturbation benefits

It can be easy getting excessive masturbation mixed up with normal, healthy practices, so here are the benefits you can experience from getting your hand down there.

Self-pleasure can help you de-stress and alleviate any anxious feelings, which also includes performance anxiety that may be getting in the way of an erection or finishing.

More self-love has been found to correlate with men having a comfort level with checking for cancer.

Men who use self-pleasuring tools and sex toys are more likely to carry out a self-exam on their testicles, which can be useful in looking for lumps or any abnormalities which could lead to cancer.

More masturbation can result in better sleep, in terms of both quality and length of rest.

Being able to orgasm can help you produce dopamine and norepinephrine, also known as feel-good hormones, which then improves brain chemistry – think of it as nature’s antidepressant.

If you have a partner, mutual masturbation has been suggested as a possible avenue to go down, with this even encouraging closeness in relationships and finding more about one another in the bedroom, improving bonding.